What rifle would work for my needs?

Gp1975 ak

Sounds like an AR (they can be durable), AK or maybe an SKS.

I think an AR or AK would fit your needs perfectly.

An SKS comes standard with a 10 rnd internal magazine but some folks have good luck with the duck bill mags. I live just fine with stripper clips.

Just out of curiosity, why no ARs?

What do you mean by durable? Dropping and dirt, or able to go through a bunch of stuff without cleaning?

Nobody makes such a thing at that price. Add $200-$300 to your budget and you described an AR. I know you don't want one, but that is what you said that you wanted in your description.

Where can you get a quality AR for $800?

@Vern: Palmetto State Armory

@OP: Get an AR and get over your ridiculous notion that they are not durable. Also, give the 6.8SPC a look.

- be durable (no AR's)

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i always chuckle a little when i see people say this kind of thing.

an quality reliable AR fits your description and can be had for as little as $600.

Nobody makes such a thing at that price.

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Well technically nobody is making them but the SKS can fit all those requirements except maybe the weight. It isn't that heavy though. My Norinco works perfectly with 30 round duckbill mags if they're "USA" brand mags. I've never had a single issue with mags in over 20 years and thousands of rounds of ammo. I also have 20 and 15 round mags plus the original 10 round mag.

I see nice examples for under $300 still. I bought a very nice Yugo for $250 a couple of years ago. The price hasn't gone up that much either. The ammo is certainly widely available and cheap. It is a great HD weapon and there are smaller mags available to make it legal to hunt in many states. There are hunting rounds available for it now as well as the original style rounds that were made for a battle carbine. It is as durable as it gets any way you look at it. They will take more punishment than just about any rifle on the market which is amazing considering they are semi-auto. They don't have pistol grips but you can change the stocks and get that if you want but I would suggest doing it. Too many of the aftermarket stocks cause problems.

Still it's a rifle that can do a lot of things for not a lot of money. It will bring down a deer easily for example and it will defend your home with the best of them IMO. It isn't super accurate but it isn't that bad. It's easy enough to hit a deer in the right spot from 100 yards or more. Having the trigger fixed goes a long way into making them more accurate. You won't be guessing when the sear is going to kick in and fire the round.

It certainly isn't a perfect rifle but it fits most of the criteria of the OP for even less money than he mentioned.

rem 7615p in 223

sounds like a mini 14 being described by the op. i see tons of them for sale at around 5 -600 buks.
some shoot very well some not so much but all are very lite, quick handleing,reliable and come in the most common caliber.

look into a Sks or a vz2008. the vz2008 is selling very cheap right now(400 dollars with 5mags). Also check out the Yugo opap.

Honestly an ar-15 is one of the few things I can think of that matches that criteria perfectly.

As far as that price range I've heard good things about Palmetto state armory, M&P sports, and buds currently has adams arms factory blemish ar-15s for $599 that sound very interesting.

There are other things that fit some but not all of those criteria SKS's and AK clones could both be servicable though the sks won't have a pistol grip and 7.62x39mm does not seem to have the wide range of loadings that are available in .223. When loaded both will be noticably heavier than an ar-15.

If you are dead set against an ar-15 a mini-14 might due but they don't have a pistol grip. It might not have as tactical a look as you are hoping for though I would consider them to be closer to a tactical weapon than a hunting one.

The thing that might have everything you're looking for in an ak platform in .223. You know like that kind saiga makes, if you dont know why this would be a problem then google it.

Sounds like you want an AK. Many of the Yugo/Serb models can be had for around $500.

Keltec also makes a few .223 rifles in that range. I can't speak to their quality though.

Check out the semi-auto hunting rifles from Remington like the 750 or 742. They can be had pretty cheap on the used market ($300 or so for a 742, $500ish for a 750), and they can take 10rd mags. Sure, its no 30-rounder, it isn't "tacticool" and it probably looks boring. Realize, its hard to fulfill all of your criteria for less than $500...

The Remington 750 rifles come with iron sights and are chambered for popular hunting cartridges. For home-defense, they are a poor choice by virtue of their power (if you shoot an intruder with a 308/30-06/etc, overpenetration is a reality). Consider getting a used 12ga pump for home-defense ($200 should be enough), and spending the rest on a 742/750.

I have found these rifles to be pretty robust, accurate, simple to maintain, reliable, relatively lightweight and "handy" (without an optic). They look unimpressive, but they've taken lots of game. I don't think you'll find a better compromise.

Edit: After checking the Remington website, they make a "Carbine" version of the 750 with an 18.5" barrel and a 7.25lb overall weight. That wouldn't be a bad choice for a short, powerful, all-around rifle with detachable magazines like you describe.

Spend your money wisely. Save up and buy a quality AR.

Spend your money wisely. Save up and buy a quality AR.

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Sage advice. Saving your cash until you can afford what you really need/want is always cheaper than buying what you don't want, selling it, then finally getting the right thing.

so you want something lightweight that isn't "dainty"? what does that mean?

have you seen the daniel defense ddm4 torture vid, or read the story behind "filthy 14"?

how have your current ARs failed you by being "dainty". sounds like you just don't like them for whatever reason, and that's fine, but be honest about it and just state that you are looking for something different. a decent quality ar would suit your criteria just fine.

Revoliver said:

@Vern: Palmetto State Armory

@OP: Get an AR and get over your ridiculous notion that they are not durable. Also, give the 6.8SPC a look.

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This

Otherwise, a VZ2008 for $400 is a great match http://palmettostatearmory.com/index.php/century-international-arms-vz2008-sporter-rifle-7-62x39-ri1554-x.html

I'd go the AK or Mini 14 route. They are both roughly in that price range, more-so the AK unless you find an older Mini.

I guess one could assume you're looking for a semi-auto, but you didn't expressly say so. In case you purposefully didn't state that requirement in the OP, you could also look at the Mossberg MVP. The 5.56 version takes AR mags. The .308 version accepts certain AR10 mags. There's also a Remington pump action rifle that takes AR mags. They're not "hi-cap" mags, but Ruger makes their Scout rifle in .308 and takes mags. Not sure on the prices of those guns though.

The truth is there are lots of options that fit your description. I only mentioned the SKS as one option. An AK is ready for high capacity mags and it has the pistol grip you wanted. They are generally very durable too although watch out for some Frankenstein models where rookie gun builders bought part kits and got into making AK's a few years back. Some of those are not reliable at all. But other than that you can likely get a good example for the price you mentioned and everything else fits except maybe the weigh and we're only talking a pound or a pound and a half more than some other options being mentioned here. They may be hard to find new at that $500 price but there are used examples around. Again just watch out for the Frankenrifles. I did find this WASR for $500. They have been pretty popular over the years. I've dealt with that retailer before and it was smooth as silk. This deal includes two 30 round mags too. It's a 7.5 lb. rifle unloaded. That's less than a pound more than a S&W M&P15 AR.

I agree with several of the above. Other than price, you described an AR exactly. Second choice would be a Mini 14 with an aftermarket stock or one of the Kalashnikov variants.

What are you wanting to hunt? I think The_Next_Generation is the only one who has suggested a rifle I'd use for large or dangerous game.

Vern Humphrey said:

Where can you get a quality AR for $800?

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I've seen Spike's Tactical ARs go for that price when they can keep them in stock. I've definitely never heard them described as "dainty."